The article Roadmap to Pre-K RTI: Applying Response to Intervention in Preschool Settings, by Mary Ruth Coleman, Froma Roth, and Tracey West, first briefly explains that RTI is an initiative that is designed to support all students and includes giving more help to the students who are not at the average developmental level. While this is especially used for “school—aged children”, adapting RTI to help pre-school children is beneficial because it lets teachers know where the children are at developmentally sooner. However for this to be effective it has to be administered “rigorously”. Along with the typical RTI, Pre-K RTI shares certain commonalities such as having a tiered instruction, a quality-learning environment, ongoing assessments and family involvements. Along with these tactics there needs to a “holistic view” of the students, assessments in naturalistic settings, and collaboration with other professionals (such a therapists) and especially parents.
There are five examples in this article of Pre-K RTI being implemented into different schools around the country. The first implementation is called Recognition & Response (R&R). The main components to R&R has to do with recognizing where the students are at developmentally, responding by providing an adapted curriculum to fit the needs of the students and collaborating with guardians and specialists. However to get an ideal on how effective R&R is, “additional research is needed”. The Literacy Partnership (TLP) is a three-year program the uses a three-tier model focusing on language difficulties. Like RTI the tiers get more intense. The challenges TLP still struggles with include lack of trained teachers, questionable data being used, and assurances that this project will be sustained long-term. The Center for Response to Intervention in Early Childhood (CRTIEC) aims to produce components, such as more efficient assessment/ intervention tools, for RTI models to thrive. Certain challenges that occur with this model making sure that the cost for the programs are reasonable, and that there is enough resources to control the programs. One main component for the next program entitled Rockford Early Childhood Program (RECP) is “empowering” the students in a “quality” learning environment, while also using the RTI methods (screening, assessment, ect…). To help make this program more successful RECP needs to attain more pre-school resources, and involving parents. The last program (Colorado State Department of Education (CSDE) uses a three-tiered model like RTI but focuses on family involvement on all tiers. This program wants classrooms staffed with various professionals but their challenges include finding funds, time, and staff to participate in this.
Roadmaps concludes with rehashing the key components to Pre-K RTI, which include a tiered model, assessments, collaborative support from faculty and guardians. In order for this to be successful it has to have unified findings, pre-school delivery services, and quality teachers. There are certain steps that need to be implemented for this program to be successful. It ranges from ensuring administrative support to establishing an RTI team, to setting reasonable expectations to collecting data. By doing these steps, students have a better chance to become successful in their lives.
At my Head Start there are quite a few children who in my opinion would truly benefit from the Pre-K RTI. One student, who I will call Colby, becomes intense and angry when things do not work for him. This includes not knowing an answer, or not being able to participate because it is not his turn. To find out how to help Colby I would try to find out why he gets upset when things go wrong. I would try to incorporate asking questions and writing them down. For example I will ask Colby when he gets upset why he is getting upset. Then I will ask him what he thinks will make it better. This will provide a starting point for the teachers to adapt how to teach him and assess how to help him. Getting information on his home life will help too. I have already done this to an extent and found out that his biological father had suffered through bipolar problems. Knowing this teacher can research how to start helping Colby work out his problems. Starting early will help him when he gets older.
Reading Roadmaps I found useful tips from the RECP program. A main component was about empowering their students in a quality learning environment. To do this in the classroom the teachers as well as myself should always talk to Colby in a way that is positive and in a sense proud of the good things he does. By Colby getting upset when things go wrong we can try to provide an atmosphere that lets him know that the good things he does matters. When something does not go right or when he does something that is not progressive, we should let him know what the right thing to do is and also stay optimistic. By letting Colby know that we believe in him I think he will be able to feel more comfortable about talking things such literacy, and math.
At this moment Colby’s anger seems to halt his progression. This happened a few times when he tried to distinguish the letters in his own name. When he did not know he would not try, I believe that he stopped trying because failing was making him angry. One thing that the teachers and myself can do is take the feeling of failure out of the way. This can be done by simply saying that it was a good try in a genuine, excited way. Then I will state the correct answer. At this stage I can also guide Colby to the right answer in a way that he still feels like he accomplished that task. For example if he is trying to locate his journal that only has his name on the front, the teachers and I can look at his binder and start to sound out his name. Once he catches on, he will choose that binder and we night say “good job” or “way to go”.
As I am writing down different procedures I can use for Colby, I am realizing that his anger might be related to an early stage of self-esteem problems. His anger stems from not accomplishing and not being able to do activities. One easy procedure we could do for Colby is very simple but I feel it will be effective. Writing anecdotes and good deeds that the children do are already being done at Head Start. For Colby we can keep the anecdotes near us at all times. When he struggles with accomplishing a task or starts to misbehave, we can refer back to past times when he did do a good job. For example, if he is trying to state what the first letter in his name is we can say “do you remember last week? I think you choose…. B. Does that sound right?” This helps him remember that what he has done he can do again.
The procedure that I think will help Colby the most is collaborating with his mom. I have already found out that she is a big part of his life and that she is willing to help when she can. Over time we have found out that Colby has a problem distinguishing letters and sounds. As teachers we can ask the mom to do a similar activity at home. For example in class we may play Letter Sound BINGO. At first we would start as a whole class then move to smaller groups to help those who struggle more. When doing this activity with Colby, we would give him positive feedback, remove failing from this game (by guiding him to the correct answer if we have to), and reminding him that he can do this. Then we will send him home with the game and ask him to play it at least one time. If he gets it right the teachers will give him a small prize. We would have already talked to his mother at this point and she would hypothetically be willing to do this. By achieving at school and at home he would hopefully gain confidence in himself.
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